Course types and access
Understand Canvas administration at the University of Auckland
On this page:
For standard courses, see:
Features and options
- This authorisation applies to all standard courses (courses that are created on Student Services Online (SSO)).
Roles and permissions
The Canvas role you have been assigned dictates what you have permission to see and do in CanvasFeatures and options
University of Auckland Canvas roles can be assigned at a course or system level.
Course roles
Course-level roles include users with permissions in the course.
Course Access Coordinator
- Primary use: Course support role.
- Permissions: Can add and remove users (except students) and view a list of course users.
- Limitations: Can do nothing more than what is specified above.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Teacher
- Primary use: Teacher assigned to teach a class.
- Permissions: Has all course-level permissions, including the ability to add, edit and delete all content in a course and edit course settings.
- Limitations: Cannot assign or modify any course roles.
- SET evaluation: Included in SET evaluation.
Teaching Support
- Primary use: Teacher support assigned to teach a class.
- Permissions: Has all course-level permissions, including the ability to add, edit and delete all content in a course and edit course settings.
- Limitations: Cannot assign or modify any course roles.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Teaching Assistant
- Primary use: Teaching assistants (TAs) assigned to a specific course or class section.
- Permissions: Can create and moderate discussions and collaborations, view course content and the gradebook and edit grades.
- Limitations: Cannot create or edit course content, manage assessment or course sections.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Course Director
- Primary use: Course director overseeing a course.
- Permissions: Has all course-level permissions, including the ability to add, edit and delete all content in a course and edit course settings.
- Limitations: Cannot assign or modify any course roles.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Course Designer
- Primary use: Content providers and other instructional support.
- Permissions: Can create course content, discussions, announcements, assignments, quizzes and other content features.
- Limitations: Cannot assign roles, edit grades, manage course sections or view the gradebook.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Observer
- Primary use: Individuals who need to monitor the course.
- Permissions: Can view course content until the course end date.
- Limitations: No permission to edit course content, participate in course activities, view or edit grades.
- SET evaluation: Not included in SET evaluation.
Student
- Primary use: Students enrolled in a course site.
- Permissions: Can view course content, engage in all course activities and submit assignments.
- Limitations: Cannot manipulate settings for a course.
System roles
System-level roles include permissions that affect the entire account as well as courses.
Monitor
- Primary use: Staff in academic services and student support roles.
- Permissions: Can monitor course content and student progress across a number of courses. Has most account permissions, including the ability to view course statistics, course/grade change logs and notifications. Can view the list of users, course content, discussions and course analytics, question banks and send messages to entire classes/individual users.
- Limitations: Limited course-level permissions. Cannot access the Gradebook and does not have permission to create/manage course content, assignments, events, view/edit grades or to add/manage teachers, TAs or course designers. Cannot manage observers.
Reviewer
- Primary use: Staff in academic services and student support roles.
- Permissions: Can review and monitor course content and student progress across a number of courses. Has most account-level permissions, including viewing course statistics, course/grade change logs and notifications. Has access to the Gradebook and can view the list of users, grades, course content, discussions and course analytics, question banks and send messages to entire classes/individual users.
- Limitations: Limited course-level permissions. No permission to edit grades, create/manage course content, assignments, events or to add/manage teachers, TAs or course designers. Cannot manage observers.
Faculty Administrator
- Primary use: Professional staff who manage Canvas course sites on behalf of teachers.
- Permissions: Has all account permissions, including the ability to view course statistics, course/grade change logs and notifications. Also has all course-level permissions to create/manage courses, course content, learning outcomes, course events, assignments, view/edit grades and view usage reports.
- Limitations: –
Guides
System Roles
How to find a user or a course in your account
How to add people to a course in your account
How to run reports in your account
Comparison chart of Canvas permissions for University of Auckland Canvas roles (PDF)
Guide to the faculty administrator role (PDF)
Cross-listed courses
Manage two or more University of Auckland courses through one primary course in CanvasFeatures and options
- At the University of Auckland, cross-listed courses are created when courses have the same content but different course codes, or, a course is a full-year course that has two course codes in Student Services Online (SSO).
- Cross-listed courses are not created when there is a possibility that a student will enrol in two or more of the cross-listed courses. This is because Canvas will only have one line in the gradebook for that student (even though they are enrolled in two course sections), thus resulting in one overall mark/grade.
- Students enrolled in cross-listed courses appear as sections in the primary course.
- You can assign assignments to course sections.
- Students in a cross-listed course will be able to see all the files, modules, readings and other content in the primary course regardless of what course they are officially enrolled in. So it is important to clearly label any content that is for a specific course/section.
- Announcements made in a cross-listed course will be seen by everyone who is enrolled in the primary course. If you want to message a specific course/section either clearly label an announcement or use conversations/inbox.
- In the course summary, it will show the statistics/distribution for all of the cross-listed courses. You will not be able to see a separate summary for each course section.
- Once you select “Submit”, the marks for all of the cross-listed courses will be taken through to examinations. You cannot submit marks for just one course section. All grades for cross-listed courses must be prepared and submitted at the same time.
Guides
Assign assignments in cross-listed courses (PDF)
Manually created courses
Request a non-standard course (a course that is not created on Student Services Online (SSO))Apply for a manually created course
- Contact your faculty to apply for or to renew a manually created course.
- The administrator specified in your application form is responsible for course management and adding/removing users.
Faculty of Arts
Lindsay Diggelmann | Associate Dean – Teach & Learn l.diggelmann@auckland.ac.nz
Business School
Susan Laurenson | Associate Dean – Teach & Learn s.laurenson@auckland.ac.nz
Faculty of Creative Arts and Industries
Richard Durham | Associate Dean Teaching and Learning
Faculty of Education and Social Work
Lawrence May | Digital Learning Team Manager l.may@auckland.ac.nz
Faculty of Engineering
Peter Jacob Bier | Associate Dean – Teach & Learn p.bier@auckland.ac.nz
Faculty of Law
Sarah-Jane Crewther | Group Services Administrator sj.crewther@auckland.ac.nz
Faculty of Medical Health Sciences
John Egan | Associate Dean – Teach & Learn j.egan@auckland.ac.nz
Faculty of Science
Andrew Luxton-Reilly | Associate Dean – L & T
For non-faculty applicants
If you are not affiliated with any faculties at the University, your application will be reviewed and approved by the Office of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic).
Features and options
University of Auckland manually created courses provide students and staff the ability to:
- Share information and files online.
- Have discussions, quizzes, groups and activities.
- Create wiki pages.
- Collaborate on online documents.
- Schedule appointments for student advising.
Typically manually created courses:
- Are for the purposes of learning and teaching.
- Are non-credit bearing.
- Are not bound to official University of Auckland course enrolments.
- May exist outside of semester or quarter schedules.
- Are not provided when existing campus technologies are available, such as Sympa for group/mass communications (see our Sympa guide).
- Are manually managed by the course administrator of the course.
Guides
Create a Sympa custom mailing list (PDF)